Slide and guide support for seat structures



March 7, 1939. LE GRAND s. WHEDON E! AL 2,149,946

SLIDE AND GUIDE SUPPORT FOR SEAT STRUCTURES Filed Aug. 27, 1935 2Sheets-Sheet l iOi INVENTORS Lefimndswhzdon. Albermfirmnefl & rRaygnonERousseau, 4 1 53' m ATT RNEYS March 7, 1939. LE GRAND s. WHEDQNET AL 2,149,946

SLIDE AND GUIDE SUPPORT FOR SEAT STRUCTURES Filed Aug. 27; 1935 2Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS Lefimndswhedon.

BY AlbertAfirinnena am, MMY @MATTORNEYS RaymonERoussew Patented Mar. 7,1939 PATENT OFFICE SLIDE AND GUIDE SUPPORT FOR SEAT STRUCTURES Le GrandS. Whedon dina, and Ramon E.

Albert A. Grlnnell, Me-

usseau, Buffalo, N. Y.,

assignors, by mesne assignments, to Le Grand 8. Whedon, Medina, N. Y.

Application August 27, 1935, Serial No. 38,108

4 Claims.

This invention relates to an adjustable seat installation for vehicles,or other structures, and it has particular relation to an improvedsupporting and operating mechanism for a seat installation wherein seatsupporting members, including the seat bottom, can be relatively movedto conform readily to various positions desired by persons havingvarious heights, weights, or other physical characteristics orpreferences that might require either average or special seatingarrangements.

The improved adjusting and supporting mechanism to which the inventionis directed involves an improvement over the type of seat installationwherein an occupant while seated can adjust the elements of the seatsupporting structure to provide bodily movement of the seat in upward ordownward swinging movements, and further the invention provides forsubstantially direct forward and rearward adjustment with respect to thechanging of the horizontal position of the seat.

One of the principal features of the invention is exemplified in animproved arrangement of guiding and adjusting mechanism for supportingthe seat structure, and is further exemplified in means for preventingbinding influences that might tend to interfere with uniform action ofthe mechanical parts of the installation.

The invention is also concerned with an arrangement of channel-likeguides for receiving slides at each side of the seat structure wherebyany tendency toward binding of the guiding and sliding parts iscompensated on each side of the structure.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is an elevation of a seat supporting and adjusting installationconstructed according to the invention;

Fig. 2 is a vertical section, on a larger scale, taken substantiallyalong the line IIII of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a two part exploded perspective of cooperating slide and guideelements of a seat supporting structure;

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary perspective of another form of a seat supportingand adjusting unit in which the invention has been incorporated;

Fig. 5 is a vertical section, on a larger scale, taken substantiallyalong the line VV of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is a vertical section, on a larger scale, taken substantiallyalong the line VI-VI of Fig. 4;

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary longitudinal section taken substantially alongthe line VII-VII of Fig. 5;

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary longitudinal section similar to Fig. 7 andillustrating a stop device for a locking element;

Fig. 9 is a plan of another form of seat supporting structure; and

Fig. 10 is a perspective of a locking lever incorporated in thestructure.

In practicing the invention a seat structure including a seat bottomframe I0 is installed upon a suitable base l2 which can be in the formof a vehicle fioor, or the like, and is provided at each side with apivotal support l3 connected to a lower frame member l4 arranged insubstantially the same manner as that illustrated in copendingapplication Serial No. 34,272, filed August 1, 1935. Each of thesemembers M has a rear angular extension I6 resting upon the base l2 andthe entire seat structure can be tilted forwardly about the pivotalconnections I3.

Front and rear links 20 and 22 at each side of the seat structure havelower pivotal connections 23 securing them to the lower frame members l4and upper pivotal connections 25 securing themin channels 26 which areidentical and receive the upper ends of the links 20 and 22 in thedownwardly opening channels thereof. A rigid brace 28 rigidly connectingthe rear links is provided with a resilient member 30, such as a coilspring, wound thereabout and having one of its end portions connected,as indicated at 32, to the brace. The resilient member is connectedunder tension at its other end portion, as indicated at 33, to the lowerframe member l4, and hence, the resilient member constantly tends topivot the links 20, 22 upwardly about their lower pivotal connections23. This kind of resilient member, one or more of which can be employed,is arranged in substantially the same manner as that described in thecopending application referred to above.

An adjusting link 35 is pivotally secured at its lower end by means ofthe pivotal connection 36 adjacent the rear link 22 upon the lowersupporting frame [4 at one side of the seat structure, and the upper endof the adjusting link is secured by means of a pivot pin 31 in adownwardly opening channel slide 40 which is slidable longitudinally inthe upper channel 26 between the pivotal connections 25.

One of the upper corners of the channel 26 receiving the slide 40 has anotch or slot 43 cut therethrough and the channel slide 40 has a seriesof notches or slots 45 in one corner thereof,

a y n which an register with the notch 46. conditions of operation. Itis to be understood depending upon the position of the slide as it ismoved longitudinally in the channel.

A locking lever 66 is rotatably mounted in straps 62 stamped integrallyfrom the upper side of the channel 26 to form bearings, and the lever 66is provided with a rigid arm 66 having an end finger 66 for engagementwith registering notches 66 and 66 in various positions of adjustment. Ahandle portion 66 of the lever is provided to facilitate manualoperation thereof. As best shown in Fig. 10, a lever similar to thelever 66 is shown and parts thereof are designated by numeralscorresponding to those applied to the lever in Fig. 1. formed of a rodwhich is bent into proper shape and the finger 66 is shaped to fit intothe notches 66, 46. It is to be understood that the notches forreceiving the end of the adjusting lever arm can be formed either at theinner or outer side of the sliding members (Figs. 1 and 9). One end I 66of a spring 66 wound about an intermediate portion of the lever 66 restsupon the finger 66 and the other end 62 of the spring rests upon theupper surface of the channel 26. Thus the spring constantly urges thefinger 65 in the direction of engagement with the notches 43 and 66.

At each side of the seat structure the channel 26 carries and guides aslide 63 which has connecting ears 65 at opposite ends connected inrigid assembly by means of suitable fasteners 66, such as screws, or thelike, with a seat bottom frame I6. This slide is provided with uprighttransverse walls 61 and 66 at its ends and intermediate portions toprovide front and rear sliding sections I6 and I2, together with anintermediate seat frame supporting section 13. That is, the seat frameis conjointly supported by the end ears 65 and the intermediate sectionI3 over which the weight of'the seat structure is distributed.

The sliding sections I6, I2 of each slide are provided with downwardlyextending flanges 15 which embrace the upper sides of the channel 26 insliding relation while ample sliding area is provided by the slidingsections I6 and I2 engaging directly upon the upper surfaces of thechannel. In this arrangement both the front and rear portions of eachslide 66 contact the upper surface of the channel and maintain propersliding contact at all times. The fianges I5 of each slide maintainproper sliding alignment thereof on the channel 26, and hence, there isno possibility of the sliding surfaces binding. Each slide located uponthe respective sides of the seat structure is thus individuallysupported and guided against such binding. Since the slide is duplicatedon opposite sides of the seat structure each combination of slide andguide constitutes a non-binding unit to carry the seat structure inforward and rearward movement, and all forces tending to disalign suchstructure will be compensated by the individual units, and there is noappreciable binding action that might be transferred from one side ofthe structure to the other. I

Longitudinal openings or slots I6 are formed in the sliding sections andtongues I1 are stamped from the body or web of each channel fordisposition through the slots. After positioning the elements of thesupporting structure, the tongues 11 are bent over, as indicated in Fig.2, to provide flanges 16 for preventing separation of the slide 63' fromthe channel 26 and insures proper assembly of the seat structure underall This lever (Fig. can be that the tongues II slide loosely in theslots and that the guiding surfaces of the sections II and I2, togetherwith their flanges I6, engage contiguous surfaces of the channel 26without any interference by the tongues. The ends of the slots I6 alsoserve as stops together with the tongues. to limit movement of the slideupon the channel.

, One end of the slide 66, for example, the front end portion, isstamped during its formation to form straps 16 adjacent the ear 66 andwall 61, and an adjusting lever 66; which can be constructed in exactlythe same manner as the adjusting lever 66, is rotatably mounted in abearing opening 62 formed by the straps. One end portion of the leverhas an arm 66 thereon formed with a locking finger 66 that is insertableinto a slot 66 formed in one side portion of the sliding section 16 ofthe slide. Other similar slots 61, are formed in the adjacent cornerportion of the channel 26 and are arranged to register with the firstslot 66, depending upon the position of the slide upon the channel. Thelever is operated by a handle portion 66. One end 69 of a spring 96engages the finger 66 and has its intermediate portion disposed about anintermediate portion of the lever. Its other end 92 engages the lowerside of the ear 66, and hence, the spring always urges the finger 66 ina direction of engagement with the slot 66 and one of the registeringslots 61. It is to be understood that this lever 86 can be constructedin the manner shown in Fig. 10.

Referring to the construction shown in Figs. 4 to 8, a pair of upwardlyopening channels IM and I62 are provided with connecting eyes I66 thatare pivotally connected to supports I66 adapted to be secured to thefloor of a vehicle. Each channel includes upwardly extending flanges I66and a bottom or web I61, and a slide II6 somewhat similar to the slide66, is slidably disposed in the channel wherein its sides are maintainedagainst lateral displacement by the channel flanges I66.

Each slide H6 is provided with connecting ears H2 at opposite endssecured in rigid assembly, by means of suitable fasteners H6, such asscrews, or the like, to the lower surface of a seat bottom frame II6.This slide is provided with upright transverse walls H6 and II! at itsend portions and intermediate portions to provide front and rear slidingsections H6, together with an intermediate seat frame supporting sectionH9. That is, the seat frame is conjointly supported by the end ears H2and the intermediate section 6 over which the weight of the seatstructure is distributed. It is, of course, to be understood that theintermediate section H9 is adapted to be screwed or bolted to the seatframe in the same manner as the ears I I2.

Since the sides of the slide II6 are prevented from lateral displacementby the flanges I66 on each side of the seat structure and throughout itssliding movement in the channel, the possibility of binding of any ofthe parts is reduced to a minimum. Like the structure already describedany tendency toward disalignment of the slide and guide is compensatedon each side of the seat structure and there can be no appreciablebinding action that might be transferred from one side of the structureto the other.

In order to guard against upward displacement of the slide II6 from theguide channel, the

flanges I66 are provided with inwardly struck a tongues I20 whichoverlap the upper surfaces of the sections II 8 and serve also as stopsto limit the forward and rearward sliding movement of the slides. Theentire channel, as well as the slide, can be stamped from sheet metal,and thus manufacturing operations greatly minimized.

An adjusting lever I22 which can be constructed in the same manner asthe levers 50 and 30 previously described, is rotatably mounted inbearing openings I23 formed transversely of the channel flanges I06. Oneend of the lever I22 has an angular arm I25 formed with'a locking flngerI26 that is insertable, into .a notch I21 formed in the upper portion ofan adjacent channel flange I06 and into one of a series of notches I20formed in the slide for locking the latter and channel against relativemovement. One end of a spring I32 that has its intermediate portionsdisposed about the intermediate portion of the lever, engages the outerend of the arm I25 (Fig. 9) and the other spring end I33 engages theupper edge of the channel flange I06, and hence, the spring always urgesthe flnger I26 in a direction of engagement with one of the notches I26.

This lever is also adapted to be constructed in the manner illustratedin Fig. 10.

Another form of locking lever I35 is illustrated in Figs. 5 to 8 whereina horizontal cam portion I36 is formed and disposed in close proximityto the upper surface of the slide H0. The cam firmly locks the slide andchannel against relative movement and portions of the cam are flattened,as indicated at I31, in order to insure freely sliding relation when thecam is not in locked position. As shown in Fig. 8, one of the bearingportions I38 of the lever can be flattened and a portion of the channelflange I06 defining the opening through which the lever is disposed canbe formed with a stop I39 which limits turning motion of the cam. Informing the opening for receiving the cam portion of the lever, aportionI40 of the channel flange is stamped out and then bent back into bearingrelation to the lever after the latter has been positioned in its normalrelation.

From the foregoing description it will be apparent that the slide andguide construction for supporting seat installations provide forpositive guiding action without possibility of binding of parts, thatall of the supporting members can be stamped at loW cost from sheetmetal material; and that the supporting and adjusting installation isadapted to be installed conveniently in any I type of seatingarrangement without alteration of either the seat frame or upholstering.

Although more than one form of the invention has been shown anddescribed in detail, it will be apparent to those skilled in the artthat the invention is not so limited, but that various changes can bemade therein without departing from the spirit of the inventionor fromthe scope of the appended claims.

We claim:

1. In a seat structure, channel frame members disposed beneath the seatstructure in substantially horizontal relation and opening downwardly,means for supporting the channel members, a slide disposedlongitudinally upon each channel member for forward and rearward slidingaction thereon, said slide having upper substantially horizontalsections, a seat frame secured rigidily to the upper sections of theslide, said slide having lower substantially horizontal sections restingslidably upon the upper surface of the channel member, said lowersections having downwardly extending marginal flanges along oppositesides of the channel member and adjacent opposite ends of the slide forpreventing lateral displacement from end to end of the slide from thechannel member, said slide having portions connecting the upper andlower sections to space the seat structure from the channel members,means for limiting relative slidin movement of each assembly of slideand channel member, and means passing through the space between saidseat structure and channel members for selectively holding the slideagainst sliding movement on the frame member at various positions withinthe limits of their relative movement.

2. In a seat structure, a channel frame member disposed beneath andadjacent each side of the seat structure in substantially horizontalrelation, means for supporting each channel member, a slide disposedlongitudinally upon each channel member for longitudinal sliding actionthereon, said slide having longitudinally spaced upper sections, a seatframe secured rigidly to said upper sections of the slide, said slidehaving lower longitudinally spaced sections slidably resting upon thechannel member, said upper and lower sections being integrallyconnected, each of said lower sections having lateral downwardextensions at both sides thereof and slidably embracing the upper sideportions of the channel member upon which it is mounted, means forlimiting sliding movement of each assembly of slide and channel member,and means for selectively holding the slide against sliding move ment onthe frame member within the limits of their relative movement.

3. In a seat structure, a channel frame member disposed beneath andadjacent each side of the seat structure in substantially horizontalrelation, means for supporting each channel member, a slide disposedlongitudinally upon each channel member for longitudinal sliding actionthereon, said slide having longitudinally spaced upper sections, a seatframe secured rigidly to said upper sections of the slide, said slidehaving lower longitudinally spaced sections slidably resting upon thechannel member, said upper and lower sections having integral portionsconnecting them, one of the latter portions of each slide being formedwith an opening extending transversely of the seating structure, eachof. said lower sections having lateral downward extensions at both sidesthereof and slidably embracing the side portions of the channel memberupon which it is mounted, means for limiting sliding movement of eachassembly of slide and channel member, said channel member and slideadjacent one side of the seat structure having registrable recessestherein adjusting means extending through the opening in said one of thesaid portions and engageable in registerable recesses in the latterchannel member and slide for selectively holding the slide againstsliding movement on the channel member within limits of their relativemovement.

4; In a seat structure, a channel frame member disposed beneath andadjacent each side of the seat structure in substantially horizontalrelation, means for supporting each channel member, a slide disposedlongitudinally upon each channel member for longitudinal sliding actionthereon, said slide having longitudinally spaced upper sections, a seatframe secured rigidly to said upper sections of the slide, said slidehaving lower longitudinally spaced sections slidably reating upon thechannel member, said upper and lower sections being lntegrallyconnected,each of said lower sections having lateral downward extensions at bothsides thereof and slidably embracing the upper side portions of thechamelmember, said slide having a slot disposed longitudinally thereinin the region of sliding engagement between the s ide and channelmember, said channel member having a rigid tongue struck out from theweb thereof slidably engaging in the slot and including an angularportion in bent form extending beyond and to one side of the slot forlimiting relative sperating movement 0! each assembly of slide andchannel member, and means for selectively holding the slide againstsliding movement on the channel member at various positions .within thelimits of their relative movement.

LE GRAND B. WHEDON.

ALBERT A. GRINNELL.

RAYMON E. ROUSSEAU.

